Sunday, December 20

Yesterday, a few of us went along with Chris, of Pondero, to see some of what appeals to him in his neighborhood, in the area somewhere beyond Sanger, Texas. These pictures were taken with my cellphone camera. I've got others I took with my film camera that are in for developing.

We rolled along gravel roads that seemed to just go on and on. It's early December in North Texas so the trees are getting a little past their prime, but the temperature is low enough that sweat is the least of our problems.

The area was more densely populated in the early 20th Century than nowadays. Along the way, the chimney, at left, was the only evidence of past occupants. There were cacti growing around and a tree growing from the hearth. After consideration, Chris decided the chimney was leaning a little more than he liked.

RatTrap's Takara was well set up for a trip like this. Any narrower, and his tires would have made the ride unpleasant. Two water bottles were perfect for the 40 mile trip out and back. This guy DID get a little carried away with the pictures. I dread what he may have captured.

Chandra's "Children" are sure to think dimly of some of the friends he made along the way. We saw more dogs in this day than one would in a month of commuting in NE Tarrant County.

In contrast to the original plan to do a one-way ride to Muenster, we went to the Rosston General Store and back. I think it was a good choice. This place was a real trip back in time. One of the gas pumps listed the price of gas as 87.9 cents per gallon. I got a huge amount of sunflower seeds for $2. RatTrap got BBQ. Some of the others got photos of the Lone Star ad, which had a lady standing next to her bicycle. Americana in all its glory. I notice that she was not wearing cycle-specific attire, and that her bike had drop bars.

The trip back went much faster than the trip out, as we had a tail wind behind us. Still, as Chris demonstrates, there was ample opportunity for a little showing off. We had no hills at all on the return trip, as evidenced by Chandra declining to sell me his two-leg kickstand after topping one of the small rises we encountered.

This is a ride about as far away from urban and suburban riding as it is possible to get. During the entire route, we had about a half dozen pickups pass us on the "CR" roads and maybe another dozen pass us on the rest of the route. The cows paid no attention to the pickups, but were VERY attentive to passing cyclists. Many thanks to Chris, and I imagine that we'll be seeing nice photos from the other attendees before long. Thanks to all for letting me tag along!

7 comments:

Your observation on the price of gas is a great one! Yes, it was about that when I got my first job. I am sure some of you can remember prices before then but I was a 100% bike commuter before I got my first job - I was still in grad school.

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Context

Subject MatterMostly it's about local transportation cycling, as it exists in the here and now. It's got a smattering of other gratuitous toy recreation thrown in to keep y'all a little off balance. For those that don't know me, toy recreation means English & Italian cars, aircraft - and downhill skiing.